Environment plastic materials damaging

The effective strength of plastics is influenced by time, temperature, and environment. For example, the breaking point for a thermoplastic material under short-term tensile testing is reached only after considerable material deformation has taken place, at least 10 percent, and in some cases over 100 percent (the ultimate elongation for reinforced thermosets is lower than for thermoplastics). Under long-term continuous loading, material failure (or an unacceptable level of material damage) will occur at much lower deformations than in tensile test-... 

In using fiber optics the designer is mainly concerned with a standardized material which has specific characteristics in terms of optical performance. Fiber optics made of plastics can be affected by exposure to the environment with deterioration of performance. Heat is an important environmental factor and the most likely cause of damage in optical applications. The heat can be generated by the light sources used. Some of the infrared generated by light sources can be removed with the use of appropriate filters. 

Corrosion is fundamentally a problem associated with metals. Since plastics are electrically insulating they are not subject to this type of damage. Plastics are basically non-corrosive. However, there are those that can be affected when exposed to corrosive environments. It is material deterioration or destruction of materials and properties brought about through electrochemical, chemical,... 

It is important to recognize that all materials will have problems in certain environments, whether they are plastics, metals, aluminum, or something else. For example, the chemical effect and/or corrosion of metal surfaces has a damaging effect on both the static and dynamic strength properties of metals because it ultimately creates a reduced cross-section that can lead to eventual failure. The combined effect of corrosion and stress on strength characteristics is called stress corrosion. When the load is variable, the com-... 

Transmaterialisation is a more fundamental approach to the problem, which, with the goal of sustainable development, would ultimately switch consumption to only those resources that are renewable on a short timescale. Clearly petroleum, which takes millions of years to form, is not an example of such a sustainable resource. For the method to be truly effective, the wastes associated with the conversion and consumption of such resources must also be environmentally compatible on a short timescale. The use of polyolefin plastic bags for example, which have lifetimes in the environment of hundreds of years, is not consistent with this (no matter how they compare with alternative packaging materials at other stages in their lifecycle), nor is the use of some hazardous process auxiliaries which are likely to cause rapid environmental damage on release into the environment. 

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